How to Make Glass Beads

The art of glass beading is known to mankind from at least the Egyptian era, to be more precise, it is known since 3000 BC. The oldest form of glass - like beads was the 'Egyptian Faïence', which was a non clay based ceramic, that creates a bright lustrous hue of many colors. There is a wide categorization in the glass beads on the basis of the method of making them and let me tell you there are numerous methods of making a glass bead. Following are a few of the types of glass beads - millefiori glass beads, lampwork glass beads, dichroic glass beads and furnace glass beads and there are more.

The famous and preferred methods of glass beads making all around the world, are probably the drawn glass beads, wound or lampwork glass beads and molded glass beads. The lamp work glass beads are called so because they were made with the help of oil lamps. Here are the glass beading instructions:

Glass Beads Preparations

• Glass rod, bead release and thin glass stringer and colors of your choice, are a few things you will need.
• Now insure a mandrel, which is a glass bead making rod.
• Place an LPG or Oxygen - Propane torch on a heat proof surface with a clamp on!
• The most important of all, wear didymium safety glasses.

Glass Beads Instructions

• At first, coat the mandrel with bead release and let it dry fully. Introduce the glass rod to the heat and continue heating until a small molten blob forms on the rod.
• It is important to keep on rotating the rod to prevent the hot glass from dripping. Now heat up the coated mandrel and wrap the molten glass around the mandrel by moving both the hands.
• Wait for some time while heat and the gravitational force forms a round form and then release the glass rod, from the wrapped molten glass. Now use the heat to give a firm round shape to the molten glass by spinning the mandrel in the flame.
• If you want to add design to this glass bead, heat up a small stringer in the flame. Meanwhile, keep holding the mandrel in the higher part of the flame.
• Heat up only the tips of the stringer and add those heated drops to the molten glass by keeping equal distance within each drop.
• You can keep the glass bubbles or even plunge them with the help of any metal poking tool.

Now, all you have to do is to keep the beads on the mandrel for at least overnight, without it coming in contact with anything. Once dried up fully, remove the glass beads and use wherever you want them to be! Now that you know how to make glass beads, making the glass beads of various shapes and various designs is a relatively easy job.

Glass Beads of Various Shapes

It is important at first perfect the glass beading technique. In the case of glass beads, the more you will practice, the better you will learn. The tools required here are just as same as the basic glass beading tools plus a marver, which is usually used for the glassblowing process. Glass beads are given various shapes with the help of the mandrel, placed in a certain manner against the marver.

Cylindrical Glass Bead
Proceed with a normal glass beading procedure and remove the glass bead from the heat. Press the hot glass bead lightly against the marver by holding the mandrel exactly parallel against the marver. Now, again heat up this pressed glass bead and repeat the same procedure until the glass bead takes a perfect cylindrical shape. Once done, cool off the glass bead.

Bicone Glass Bead
After going through the regular procedure, remove the glass bead from the heat. Press the heated mandrel against the marver, by holding the mandrel at an angle, that can make a cone at the base of the glass bead. Do not press the mandrel too hard otherwise it will make flat spots on the glass bead surface. Continue the heating process until the glass bead takes your desired shape, also heat up the other end to get the perfect finishing.

While giving various shapes to the glass beads, it is very important to stop the heating process at the point where the glass stops glowing. You can make the glass beads of various colors and various shapes and use them in making different glass bead jewelry forms. I am sure you will give it a try and will make your own glass beads!